Picking Your Pup
The idea of raising a new pup on your own can be overwhelming. You hope for a dog that can fit in  beautifully with your everyday life. Your life in Jacksonville, Florida is hectic, you’ve got a full-time profession, you may be raising a new family, you like to travel or may be you just retired. Peace of Mind Puppy provides a stress and anxiety free experience to add in that  amazing dog to your life.

The Process Starts With a Assessment
We think it’s crucial that you know who you will be coordinating with. Building a relationship is incredibly important to our company in Jacksonville, Florida. Our conversation begins with easy questions and leads into an in detail discussion, which will give us a better idea of who you are and what your perfect dog might be. We would like to have a fantastic working partnership with you. It begins the journey to select, teach and raise your pup.

Choosing The Perfect Breed For Your Household
Once you have made a decision you want to include that amazing dog to your life in Jacksonville, Florida. You may have your heart set on a certain breed or maybe you’re interested in one of our pups that are presently in our puppy raising program. There are things to consider including where you live, how much you work, are raising a young family, you love to travel or maybe you have recently retired. All this will not restrict your options, yet help shed light on your lifestyle in Jacksonville, FL. We help guide you in the decision making process. As we get to know you better, we can aid you decide what you want and which breed will best suit your lifestyle.

Picking The Right Breeder in Jacksonville, Florida
We work with responsible breeders who are truly interested in improving their breed with good health and fantastic temperament of their pups. The first eight weeks of a new puppy’s life are as essential as to what happens after. A great breeder recognizes this and helps get the puppy off to a great start.

We have established a relationship with many great breeders. We particularly find breeders who recognize the early part they play in a puppies life. They understand when one of their puppies grows through our program, it ensures the puppy will end up having a good life.  It’s incredibly important to work closely with the breeder. We depend on the breeder’s feedback together with our years of knowledge to select the puppy with the best temperament for the prospective new family.

The Puppy‘s Training in Jacksonville, Florida
Training your puppy is a combo of teaching new skills including manners, setting boundaries, encouraging healthy relationships, as well as exposing your dog successfully to people, other dogs and desensitizing him or her to all various environments.For example, we may have the puppy stay overnight with various people in various settings; which produces a dog for you who is comfortable and easy to live with because he or she can easily adapt|adjusts} to your way of life. Because of this and exposures to other factors your dog easily connects with you and your family.

Imprinting Good Behavior ~Birth to 16 Weeks
Picking up your puppy from the breeder

Training starts the moment a new puppy is in our care in Jacksonville, Florida. Once we choose the puppy from the litter, the very first thing we want to accomplish is developing confidence and a bond with this new puppy. We begin our relationship having fun even though we’re always teaching. Under our close guidance, we start exposing the pup to its new world. For instance, getting him or her to follow us, climb stairs, walk over logs, and even get relatively near to loud noises. By doing this, we are environmentally socializing your dog to the world while building up our bond. We are huge dog lovers, yet significantly aware in those moments it is imperative to concentrate more on being a leader and guide as the new pup discovers this new world without the companionship of its litter mates or mom.

Crucial time for learning
In the initial few weeks we are teaching your new puppy boundaries, trust and focus. There is no restriction as to what we may integrate into our techniques. Typically we use specific locations or objects to create an experience for the puppy. At times a spur of the moment opportunity may present itself in Jacksonville, Florida. Our decisions and vision are limitless. Every exposure and experience builds on the previous one. Through all of this, we very closely supervise the puppy. We don’t restrict ourselves to inflexible rules. We try to get more creative, think outside the box, and make the most of activities that manifest before us. Those opportunities are priceless when it comes to teaching the dog.

Every interaction with the new puppy is a teaching moment. We often think about it as an early investment in the life of this puppy. This is the first time away from his or her littermates and staying with us in Jacksonville, Florida. Puppies have a small window of time during brain development when they are most impressionable. This is called the imprinting also known as the critical learning period. Puppies learn more during this time than any other period of time in their lives. The quality and quantity of what they experience will have a substantial influence on their future personalities and decide a lot of their “good” or “bad” behavior tendencies. During the course of the imprinting stage, every experience is crucial. It is important to build their self-confidence. The expression ‘don’t sweat the small stuff’ does not apply to their early interactions. Because puppies are taking in every experience like a sponge, we need to stay very aware of all interactions and yet still have a good time with our new puppy.

A Well-Mannered Friend
4 to 6 months 

A well-trained dog is much more than just obedient. Knowing how to sit, stay or walk nicely on a loose leash are necessary things to learn. Good manners, great social skills and a healthy relationship with his or her family are very important. In addition, desensitization, exposure to many different distractions and situations, along with being comfortable to fit into a lifestyle in Jacksonville, FL is equally important.

Our focus is to raise a dog with remarkable manners and social skills. We start by teaching obedience the day we bring them home from the breeder; which carries on as we refine the dog’s behavior. The goal is to have a stable foundation by about 4 to 6 months. We practice obedience, making it a regular request in our day-to-day routine as well as within each new situation we expose your puppy to. We go from shaping to defining commands and testing them with distractions, duration and distance. Communication is at the core of our philosophy. Being clear and consistent is key. We restrict our words when giving commands. We want your dog to understand what we want when we give them the command. When we say ‘come’ or ‘here’ we expect 100% response immediately.

Proofing Behavior in a Social World in Jacksonville, FL
6 months to young adult

Enter the teenage years– adolescence. This is the usual age when many dogs are re-homed or given up to rescues. The adolescent stage can find your sweet pup becoming a monster. That nice pup can be more mouthy and disobedient than you could ever imagine. Many owners hope their dog will grow out of undesirable behaviors. Their dog is testing what is allowed and what is not. Allowing a dog to continue practicing naughty acts makes changing unwanted behavior more difficult.

Testing in the Real World in Jacksonville, Florida 
We work to prevent any unwanted behavior by instilling boundaries and practicing obedience in high distraction locations. For example, we practice recalls when your dog is highly distracted perhaps chasing something as common as a squirrel. We test and proof obedience in high traffic spots, around barking dogs, near playgrounds and within public places.

As the dog moves through the adolescent stage we continue to challenge the dog by putting him or her in various situations. We imagine each situation as a picture. What does that look like to the puppy? How does that picture shift from day to day or location to location. We are aiming to teach a dog how to cope in every new and different setting or scenario. We are raising a puppy that isn’t depending on ongoing commands that control what he or she should and shouldn’t do. Instead, we prefer a dog that can make great choices. Our main goal is to have a well-balanced dog, who will be comfortable your home.

We continue to reinforce and fine-tune good manners making good behavior a habit for the dog. Throughout this time, the puppy has been residing with the dog trainer in his/her personal home. Throughout this time, your puppy will also spend a few days and nights hanging out with another relative or friend. Providing the dog with this chance, encourages your puppy to continue to be confident and comfortable in new environments. This ensures those habits and good manners will stay when he goes on to your home in Jacksonville, FL.